The present invention relates to a wound dressing or an affixing tape for skin applications that includes a carrier layer which is coated on one side with an adhesive elastomer.
Thin adhesive wound dressings made from a plastic film that is permeable to water vapor, for instance OpSite(copyright) (Smith and Nephew, England) or Tegaderm(copyright) (3M, USA), include an acrylate-type adhesive or an adhesive that has similar properties. When repeatedly applied and removed, such adhesives are apt to remove with them parts of the upper skin layer (the stratum corneum) and dressings of this nature can result in skin damage. These adhesives also fasten strongly to hairs on the skin, therewith causing pain and discomfort when removing the dressing.
Also known to the art is a gauze bandage designated Mepitel(copyright), which is affixed to the skin by means of a very soft adhesive silicone elastomer. A silicone elastomer has skin-friendly adhesive properties and is much more gentle to the skin than the aforesaid adhesives. Neither does it tend to strip away parts of the stratum corneum as it is removed. The person wearing such a dressing will not experience discomfort or pain as the dressing is removed. The adhesiveness of the silicone elastomer is not impaired by removal of the dressing, and the dressing can therefore be removed and replaced several times.
Consequently it would be beneficial if the adhesives used with plastic film dressings could be replaced with an adhesive elastomer that has adhesive characteristics similar to those of the silicone elastomers used with Mepitel(copyright), particularly when the dressing is to be placed over sensitive skin. One serious problem in this regard is that such elastomers have been found to adhere to the skin with the same strength as that to which they adhere to the plastic film, and consequently there is a serious risk of the elastomer layer, or large parts thereof, remaining on the skin when attempting to remove the dressing.
One object of the present invention is to solve this problem and to provide a functional film dressing that includes a layer of soft, adhesive elastomer.
This object is achieved in accordance with the invention by means of a wound dressing or an affixing tape for skin applications which includes a carrier layer that is coated with a soft, adhesive elastomer on one side thereof and which is characterized in that the carrier layer is a laminate that consists of plastic film and a material of irregular surface structure. Because the soft, adhesive elastomer is fastened to the plastic film via the material of irregular surface structure, the elastomer will be anchored more strongly to the film than would otherwise be the case, therewith avoiding the danger of the elastomer remaining on the skin when removing the dressing.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the material of irregular surface structure is comprised of nonwoven material, and the soft, adhesive elastomer is comprised of a silicone elastomer.